Obokata Scandal Puts Research in Peril

The STAP stem cell research scandal has exposed a number of important issues fundamental to science and the politics of science. Critically, it poses questions about the apparent lack of research rigor in Japan.

TOKYO — Front-page headlines, tweets, TV news shows, and tabloids in Japan this week were agog about a Japanese researcher accused of fabricating parts of scientific papers hailed as breakthroughs in stem cell research.

You've probably heard about it. I heard because I happened to be in Japan this week. The Japanese news media's wolfpack instinct of attacking a stray female caught out in the open was remarkable. Everything I despise in the mob mentality of the Japanese press and its audience was on full display.

Still, the story captivated me.

The scientist persecuted in this still-unfolding story is Haruko Obokata of the Riken Center for Developmental Biology in Kobe. She led a team who reported that a simple acid bath might turn cells in the body into stem cells -- except, not so much.

Obviously, it's hard for anyone to resist a story about the downfall of a precocious researcher hailed as a national hero only several weeks before. But as it unfolded, the story exposed a number of important issues fundamental to science and the politics of science. Most importantly, it posed questions about the apparent lack of research rigor in Japan.

The journal Nature published the research results in January. Besides the Riken Center, participants in the study included Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and Harvard Medical School. Shortly after the alleged breakthrough, a flurry of comments questioning whether Obokata was able to replicate the stimulus-triggered acquisition of pluripotency (STAP) stem cells surfaced in the global scientific community (and the social networks here in Japan).

The suspicion was triggered by Obokata's sloppy methodologies -- some careless, others bordering on unethical. An image showing a genome analysis appeared to have been spliced together. Images of two placentas from two different experiments looked almost identical. Two more images appeared to have been duplicated from Obokata's 2011 doctoral dissertation, even though the study said they were derived from an entirely different experiment.

Obokata's employer, Riken, a semi-governmental research institute, began investigating the matter in March. Last week, it announced that it had found her guilty of fabrication, and it apologized for behavior that had damaged the credibility of Japan's scientific community.

What did the news conference prove?
On Wednesday, Obokata held a news conference and apologized for her mistakes, which she said were due to her inexperience. However, she denied that she had acted deliberately.

"More than anything, the experiments properly took place," she told reporters. "As the data actually exists, I want to clarify that I did not create these papers with ill intent." She also said she was able to replicate STAP stem cells more than 200 times.

The live TV broadcast of Obokata's nearly two-hour-long press conference (shades of Chris Christie), packed with reporters and photographers, was… entertaining at best, not for new discoveries, but as theater.

As I watched, I was disappointed that Obokata didn't come prepared to offer any fresh evidence (raw data) that could have proved that STAP cells exist. The question-and-answer session turned into a mere war of words.

Who has your back?
I can't help but wonder why none of Obokata's co-authors showed up to face the press. Reportedly, one Japanese co-author is even proposing to retract the study.

Another co-author, Charles Vacanti of Harvard Medical School, told The New York Times, "I continue to feel that the findings presented in these papers are too significant to disregard based on relatively minor errors or external pressures." He also said he'd talk to the other authors before making a recommendation.

That makes sense to me. Why are the rest of the co-authors keeping mum? Why is nobody standing by his own work?

As much as I lament Obokata's sloppiness, which tarnished her research results, I also question the hasty investigation carried out by her elders at Riken and their apparent eagerness to wash their hands and move on. The Japanese institution announced last week that it plans to conduct its own research on STAP stem cells (most likely without Obokata). However, for the immediate future, it seems to have no interest in tracing whatever evidence is still stored in the lab to prove or disprove that Obokata's STAP cells actually exist.

This doesn't seem logical.

To all appearances, Riken is practicing, not science, but the politics of science (not to be confused with political science). As I noted earlier, this is a semi-governmental research institute. Known as a researchers' paradise in Japan, Riken needs to secure budgets from the government. Perhaps this explains its skittishness. But that's no excuse for compounding Obokata's lack of rigor with a less than rigorous investigation.

In the end, in any scientific and engineering research, it's clear that peer review -- buttressed by an established code of conduct -- is the gold standard. The convenience of cherry picking favorable data shouldn't trump hard evidence.

At the same time, it's my belief that, whether you are a researcher or an engineer, you need to know that your employer will have your back. Otherwise, it's hard to stick your neck out, even when that's the right -- and possibly historic -- thing to do.

Riken failed in that test. Perhaps, if the culture there had been healthier, the implicit trust that should have prevailed between Obokata and her employer would have kept her from cutting the corners that undercut her research.

I agree with the Junko Yoshida's position that Riken had acted hastily in making decision on the Haruko Obokata's articles in the Nature Journal. Riken's action had muddied the great tradition of Japanese science program, and the entire Riken committee members should resign from their posts. Riken has no right to destroy the future of young Japanese scientist by making an accusation damaging to her credential without a thorough investigation. IMHO there was no detailed proof produced by the Riken committee to support their position that the Nature articles were falsified. The problematic items that Riken had pointed out had nothing to do with the key findings that Haruko Obokata wanted to convey to the world scientific community. Haruko Obokata did not say that her STAP is easy to replicate. She asked that other scientists experiment her methodology to perfect this area of science for curing difficult disease. Her experiment was witnessed by folks at Harvard and is not her imagination. Haruko Obokata's apology in her press conference should not be perceived as admission of guilt. It should be accepted as her sincerity in her dedication to STAP project, and that she was being truthful. Haruko Obotaka was courageous. The scientists worldwide should give her as much support as possible to take unnecessary pressure off of her, and erase incorrect image of women in science.

Junko, I grew up as the underdog, bullied daily at school and beaten often. It made me mindful of what people go through and now I become the dog with a bone when I think someone is travelling through life with defective attitudes. I don't doubt that sometimes my reasoning may be defective, which is why I prefer to have people ask themselves the questions I do. They will then either put their questions to me setting me on the straight and narrow or alternatively at the very least rethink their own position.

@Etmax, very well put. I love people like you who would challenge those who express predjudice (mostly out of ignorance and inexperience in dealing with a variety of people with different backgrounds).

Instead of writing them off as being ignorant, we do need to ask them questions -- just like you did. I applaud that effort and I keep reminding myself that I need to do the same.

Hi Junko, I'll never forget while working at NEC (Nippon Electric Corp) in the '80's I was talking about something, can't remember exactly what and the subject somehow got onto people that had done us some wrong, and this guy suggested any race was ok except for those damned Indians (not native Americans), that were such (expletive).

I said "well how many Indians have done you wrong?" and he mentioned one person that had done something not well received, to which I said "so from a sample of one they are all bad??" I suggested there were another 700 million to choose from (it was the '80's). I then asked how many people had done him wrong and he listed I think 2 of his own countrymen, to which I said well then by your own standard your countrymen are worse don't you think? He changed his stance after that, I hope it stayed with him.

It was basically a case of him coming from Asia and having been brought up with a whole lot of predudices and carried them with him to Australia that is as much of a hotch potch as the USA and peoples he had not encountered or heard much of back home were ok, but the cultural background entrenched some strong reservations of the old.

That personality trait I am afraid is global. What I call intolerance to difference, and indifference to tolerance :-)

The problem is that too many people become too dogmatic about it all and forget that even an accurate generalisation may only be true for as few as 10% of any group. Also they forget that there are very few totally wrong standpoints, all have been honed through the ages to address a particular range of issues relating to every day life.

Dear Junko, I too try to avoid broad generalisations as they generally don't give a good picture of the ones outside the box. That said, deep rooted cultural differences between groups are a useful tool for understanding what is going on in the human world.

The problem is that too many people become too dogmatic about it all and forget that even an accurate generalisation may only be true for as few as 10% of any group. Also they forget that there are very few totally wrong standpoints, all have been honed through the ages to address a particular range of issues relating to every day life.

I come from an extremely multicultural family (Italian, French, Hungarian, Russian, German) and I never say anything of course but I smile as I see the little matches light up :-)

I guess really all I'm saying is I understand why these things go on, that is the thought processes that leads to them and while I may have a different view or would take a different path, It's ok I get it.

Re the decades for individualism to pervade all, the increasing mixing of people from everywhere will see to that :-) There may be a time not too far ahead where the country in which you go to university will be as natural a choice as what cuisine you prefer.

@Etmax, I usually refrain from broad generalizations as a rule of thumb for a journalist, but I thnk you have a point here. It will take decades for "individualism" to get rooted in Asian culture. I still believe that the scandal itself was triggered by a sloppiness in the papers submitted by the scientist, but the way the mob attack took place on her is definitely rooted to the lack of individualism among the Japanese people and the Japanese media.

I took an important position in a company a few years back and part of the intro was a Dunn & Bradstreet personality test. I took the test in Singapore and there were around 20 Singaporeans as well as 5 Americans and myself (Australian)

The outcome was that all 20 Singaporeans were within 2-3% of each other in the various traits that were measured, and the other six were all over the place with variations up to 60%, an indication of the individuality so prevalent in Anglo/American/Autralian society.

My guess would be that some 80-90% of Japanese would be within 10% of each other.

I'm not putting that forward as a negative by any stretch of the imagination, just highlighting the different levels of cohesion between Asia and the west.

I means that they are less likely to go against accepted tradition instead largely following cultural norms.

The inventor of the Blue LED was one of those right outside the box, he challenged his company for rights to his invention which was very "un-Japanese" if I may say that certainly not meaning disrespect. It will take decades I believe before most individuals flourish (as individual that is) in Japan, but then they will be much more prepared to voice their opinions even when unpopular an dI think these types of scandals will be a thing of the past.

I hope no one takes offense to what I am saying, it is only intended as a causal analysis of various cultural aspects that possibly underlie this scandal.

I support that women angle. Its quite difficult to set the facts right if your are a woman in these societies. If it was US, woman would be given fair chance and woman would also not let herself become victim.